In the news. After a record year of $10 billion-plus transactions in 2025, markets are already preparing for another surge in dealmaking this year. As The Wall Street Journal reports, renewed private equity activity and growing participation from sovereign-wealth funds are fueling the trend. The growing average deal size also signals confidence among boards and CEOs, according to one M&A leader. Much of the energy is concentrated in the US market, while in Europe, year-over-year deal activity declined amid political fragmentation and regulatory uncertainty. [WSJ]

For 2025, deal value finished at $4.7 trillion—up 43 percent from $3.3 trillion a year earlier, and 20 percent higher than the ten-year average.

On McKinsey.com. Global M&A rebounded sharply in 2025 as easing financial conditions, resilient balance sheets, and renewed confidence helped push global deal activity to 4.2 percent of the total market value. In McKinsey’s new report on M&A trends, Jake Henry, Mieke Van Oostende, and their fellow authors explore what global and sector-specific trends are likely to support continued momentum in 2026. Learn more about the forces shaping M&A and the capabilities leaders need to compete in today’s deal environment.

Seize the M&A opportunity

In the news. The rapid adoption of AI tools for coding and software development is turning once-scarce skills into commodities. The Financial Times says that the skills that now command a premium are those that machines struggle to replicate, including collaboration, judgment, creativity, and problem-solving. One long-term study of labor market data found that workers with stronger interpersonal skills are more successful than those with greater technical fluency. In an AI-augmented economy, it is not the technical skills that differentiate performance, but rather what people do with them. [FT]

On McKinsey.com. As AI accelerates the pace and scope of business change, human leadership has never been more critical. McKinsey’s Bob Sternfels and Daniel Pacthod, along with coauthor Børge Brende, explain that AI can transform how people work but cannot replace the essentially human work of setting aspirations, exercising judgment, and creating the conditions for teams to succeed. To develop next-generation leaders, companies can start by looking for the leadership attributes that are most important to their goals. They can also establish cultures of learning and cultivate empathy, wisdom, and trust in their up-and-coming leaders.

Develop AI-era leaders

Another century of progress

In the news. At this year’s Davos meeting, the conversation around AI shifted from investment to impact. According to Bloomberg, it’s an anxiety-inducing moment: Executives face mounting pressure to demonstrate that their massive AI outlays are translating into real productivity and revenue gains—even at AI firms themselves. At the same time, other start-ups are seeing a growing client base and touting the benefits, suggesting growing optimism about the technology’s business applications and profitability potential across sectors. [Bloomberg]

On McKinsey.com. What will it take to sustain human progress over the next 100 years, after the astonishing gains made in the past century? In A Century of Plenty: A Story of Progress for Generations to Come, Chris Bradley, Nick Leung, Marc Canal, Sven Smit, and their coauthors imagine a future in which everyone enjoys a high quality of life by 2100 and examine what it would take to achieve it. The authors stress that it’s technically possible with the world’s energy, food, and resources. But such outcomes are not inevitable, and success depends on a new narrative of growth, optimism, and innovation.

Discover a future of plenty